One of the most debated developments in human history is the transition from hunter-gatherer to agricultural societies. This week’s edition of Science presents the genetic findings of a Swedish-Danish research team, which show that agriculture spread to Northern Europe via migration from Southern Europe.
About 300 000 years ago humans adapted genetically to be able to produce larger amounts of Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids. This adaptation may have been crucial to the development of the unique brain capacity in modern humans. In today’s life situation, this genetic adaptation contributes instead to a higher risk of developing disorders like cardiovascular disease.
An international research team has succeeded in identifying a specific kind of dust grain in the vicinity of cool giant stars. This means fresh impetus for Uppsala University researcher Susanne Höfner’s theory about how stars die. In the latest issue of Nature, she discusses the team’s findings.
There is a connection between phthalates found in cosmetics and plastics and the risk of developing diabetes among seniors. Even at a modest increase in circulating phthalate levels, the risk of diabetes is doubled. This conclusion is drawn by researchers at Uppsala University in a study published in the journal Diabetes Care.
On April 15, a century have passed since the Titanic foundered during its maiden voyage. Since then there has been a widespread belief that in a disaster, women and children will be saved first. Based on analyses of 18 of the most notable shipwrecks from the 19th century until today, researchers from Uppsala University conclude that this is a myth.
An Argentine-Swedish research team has reported a 70 million years old pocket of fossilized bones and unique eggs of an enigmatic birdlike dinosaur in Patagonia. The study is published in the early on line edition of the journal Cretaceous Research.
An important step towards developing a rapid, inexpensive diagnostic method for autism has been take by Uppsala University, among other universities. Through advanced mass spectrometry the researchers managed to capture promising biomarkers from a tiny blood sample. The study has just been published in the prestigious journal Nature Translational Psychiatry.
Uppsala University and Akademiska Hus are jointly investing SEK 177 million in expanding the Uppsala Biomedical Center (BMC). The goal is to provide medical and molecular bioscience researchers at the Science for Life Laboratory (SciLifeLab) with a meeting place of international stature.
New findings from an international team of researchers show that most neandertals in Europe died off around 50,000 years ago. The previously held view of a Europe populated by a stable neandertal population for hundreds of thousands of years up until modern humans arrived must therefore be revised.
In a recent study led by Uppsala University, the researchers compared the DNA of identical (monozygotic) twins of different age. They could show that structural modifications of the DNA, where large or small DNA segments change direction, are duplicated or completely lost are more common in older people. The results may in part explain why the immune system is impaired with age.
New research from Uppsala University, Sweden, shows that reduced insulin sensitivity is linked to smaller brain size and deteriorated language skills in seniors. The findings are now published in the scientific journal Diabetes Care.
New research from Uppsala University shows that a specific brain region linked to appetite regulation is reduced in elderly people who are obese. Poor eating habits over a lifetime may therefore weaken brain function that helps us to control our desire to eat. The findings are published in The International Journal of Obesity.